John Boy Saint

And not forgetting the Old Gold shirt and Black shorts (a la Wolves) as our away strip. Last time we played in Navy Blue shorts, the shorts were still being referred to as knickers in the programmes

Aside from Gao, I don’t think there is anyone at the influence level at the club who is actually a businessman, hence the dithering by committee, Les Read sports coach worked at the FA wrote a book, Ralph Kruger sports coach wrote a book, Ross Wilson stumbled into football at Falkirk, found himself a role on the coat tales of the game. None of them from what I can tell have had a position in business where a decisive descision needs to be taken, striking while the iron is hot. The Coates family binned of Sparky early on when things weren’t quite right up at Stoke, Saints dithered for 2 months more, they binned of Lambert as soon as the season was done, in the modern competitive world of betting Bet 365, their main business, they can’t shilly shally of a descision that keeps their business at the top of their game. The dildo brothers at West Ham, they maybe objects of mirth due to the source of their wealth, but in reality the pair of them are business men who have made a lot of money selling titilation (you can imagine there is a fine line between a bit of naughty and pornography) Moyes kept them up, they felt Moyes wasn’t right to move forward with binned him off and pulled a rabbit out of the hat appointing Pellegrini on a “pay cut”. We haven’t had a cold hard face business man at the upper escelons of the club since Cortese was binned off, and before anyone says “what about Ms Liebherr she took on her late fathers businesses” Cortese was also removed from the board at Male the company Markus built and made his money, a comment to come out of that company after Cortese left was that it had gone from a company with drive to a company pretty much just floating along directionless. So in reality it’s little wonder it’s taking so long, we have an owner who bought a pretty bangle, with a board who have in reality never actually made true hardfaced decisive business decision in their working lives. Plenty of chat but nobody putting their balls on the table.

As I mentioned on the Hughes thread, I read that as well as Lambert going the Director of Football or whatever they call him up there, is also heading towards the door with Wimmer Berahino and A N other being his call not Sparky.

While we are waiting, I saw a piece in the paper over the weekend about Lamberts departure from Stoke. It went on to say that the DoF (or whatever Stoke called him) was also under severe threat of being shown the door, because of the failings of the recent signings there providing a very expensive bench if they were lucky enough to be selected. So whilst the Coates family maligned Hughes in a recent club statement, as widely commented, and feared, on here Hughes seemingly didn’t have the level of input into transfers that let him down. Taking the signing of Carrillo as an example, might be the reason why Hughes apparently doesn’t want players bought for him, by Les Reed, who he has no faith in and ends up the same creek as he found himself at Stoke.

I use to get my barnet fair cut in the same place as Dave Kitson in Reading. Remember him sat next to me one day getting a trim, I had very dark hair at the time, and when I got up from the chair his and my trimmings had been swept together, his hair was strikingly luminous by comparison.............. That’s it sorry no dirt, he didn’t say much, even though the bloke cutting his hair was a Reading fan there was only about a minutes footie chat.

But every manager since Pardew left has been allowed a random outside “the box” player, Adkins had Johnno Quick, Pochettino had Captain Jack Sparrow - fruit loop Osvaldo, Koeman had his love child Little Jordi Clasie (that was a sentimental one on Ronald’s part after Jordi was shown crying his eyes out when RK left Feyenoord). Puel - Hmmmmm not sure maybe his random was as subtle as him. And Pellegrino was allowed the inert reflection of his time with us, because the board hadn’t twigged we were ambling into the mire until the ball was rolling with Monaco in January.

Jeez!! Has Rupert Lowe returned along with his Secure Retirement Old Folks Homes!!!.............fЦ*ж me it’s like being back at The Dell without a pot to piddle in hoovering up twilight players for bobbins!! Johnny Evans and Joe Hart??!!! If the Black Box spits them 2 out, it would be time to unplug it, stick it on a boat and dump it out in the English Channel under the cover of darkness so no bugger can find it.

Think you will find he had his chastity belt on when they came for the Ox, few little things I heard from that dealing most of the Arsenal negotiating team walked out of that meeting differently to how they walked in.

I don't know rank amateurs! leaks like this ain't supposed to be sneaked out until about 12;30 tomorrow when the eyes of the nation (and world) will be elsewhere. I have to say since Cortese left, I have given up all hope of Saints making a succinct positive quick decision on anything. Mrs Hughes is going to be hacked off, if the DT timing is true) as didn't someone say they were off on their holibobs this weekend. :D:D:D:D ​forgot to add the smilies before someone takes this post seriously

Can only be one: 17 years ago tomorrow likeable chap comes on, showing a few added pounds, moments later the ball comes to him just on the edge of the box, where he does what he had been doing for years, spins, hitting the ball sweet as a nut on the volley past the flapping keeper, who has no chance. Bang Saints 3 Arsenal 2.........grown men reduced to tears.

Also if you shut him out and he goes all "its my ball and I'm going home for MY TEA!!", and his fuse shortens, making him a liability against foreign players who at this level make being shot by the sniper in the floodlights a balletic art. Stiil Henderson is the one who has me scratching my head, if he didn't play for Liverpool would he be anywhere near this squad? Anyway at the end of the day at least Cleverley didn't get picked.

Been a busy boy all day and only heard the highlights of the newbies on the radio. Home and had a peek at the squad, I feel like I have just found a copy of a 4 year old newspaper down the back of a cupboard.

I think it’s the nature of the league we are playing in, with so much money sloshing around and with so much to lose if you drop out of the league, whereas if we were bimbling around in the Championship the team would probably be overflowing with academy products. But because there is little room or time for experimentation in the Premier League the leaning is increasingly towards ready made “experienced” players who have had their wrinkles ironed out at other clubs. Bit like everyone in your street has arranged to have a pub crawl on a Saturday night, everyone is having Chicken Kiev for dinner, you spent an hour and a bit making and cooking it yourself from scratch, everyone else in the street have all been to M&S and bought theirs ready made and it’s on their table in 30 minutes. Everyone from your street is in the 1st Pub having a merry time 45 minutes before you arrive and ready to move on to the next pub before you have had a sip of your first drink: or even already moved on to the next pub! As the saying goes Time and Money waits for no man........Sadly these days that saying is very apt for the Premier League.

Cheers Glen for yet another season of quality post match reporting, understandably not as humorous as previous seasons, but you can only comment on the turgid dross that has, more often than not, been delivered into your eyes. Thanks

According to all the look at us horse poo that use to spew out of Southampton FC, the club allegedly knew who the next 5 managers were before the present one had his name plate screwed to his office door. So whatever news comes out of your thread will probably be out of date already.

Very much doubt there was a job at the FA, especially with that grinning fool Trevor Brooking still in situ, and him being the reason Les Reed was sacked by the FA in 2004, so Brooking could be shuffled into the position by the faceless Blazers as FA Director of Football Development. A role that Les was totally nailed on, and far better qualified, to get.

It’s going to be a very long summer.......

Firstly Well done Mark Eddie and Mark for keeping the team up, also well done for pulling a bunch of talented lads into playing unit when for much of the past 2 seasons many of them have looked like complete strangers to each other at times. So the big decision is do we keep him on, one camp is of the view “nah there is better out there, he hasn’t done anything” yet can’t name anyone aside from the usual pie in the sky names. The other camp is “yeah why not” - given what he has achieved in recent weeks given the tools (and condition they were in) he had to work with. Given the last 2 appointments, that is the pedigree of Manager we are going to appoint from overseas, Pochettino was, as it turned out, was a good find. But as they say lightening never strikes twice. I think quite simply many managers do or don’t fit the club they are managing, just a weird dynamic. Pardew didn’t fit us. Adkins fitted like a glove - but elsewhere hasn’t seemingly achieved the level he did with us. Pochettino fitted with us and has fitted with Spurs. Koeman fitted with us - went to Everton, which should have been his next level and failed ultimately (he only got the Dutch gig because both him and the KNVB buried the hatchet). Puel (who) fitted in France but didn’t fit us. Pellegrino (again who) we know didn’t fit us either. What’s to say Hughes isn’t the next right fit for us, and given the tools we have beyond the playing staff actually take us back to where we were 2 seasons ago.

I’ve been going down the Saints since 1978, I have watched some piles of steaming you know what in that time, not once in that time have I ever considered making an early get away from a game to “beat the rush”, until this season. I hasten to add that despite the turd I have witnessed this season I have stuck it out.

Ok.......maybe not

Spawny bloody offside goal..........bloody useless officials. if these clowns lived in South America they would fear for their bloody lives

Nope I think the 120 containers of used Fivers would be about right, coming from Liverpool there are bound to be a few dodgy ones in there, probably a few containers bulked up with bricks and hub caps too

Be interesting to see what becomes of Spurs over the next couple of seasons. Arsene Wenger was asked in his last pre match press conference what he felt was his greatest achievement, and felt it was when Arsenal moved into the Emirates and he still managed to keep Arsenal qualifying for the champions league and up the top of the Premier League, despite the financial restrictions placed on his spending power due to the expense of building a new stadium. Spurs apparently already run a tight ship where players wages are concerned, so having spent a heap on the new WHL, will their financial wings be clipped for a couple of seasons too!

Think it’s still a bit like that today, except everyone has a mobile device all automatically clamouring for a mere hint of 4G and one lucky soul wins the lottery and gets just enough for a score update to be delivered to his phone, and casually mutters it to his mate sat alongside him loud enough for folks to hear and away the rumour goes like the opening credits to Mission Impossible. That said Mrs JBS has a chap sat next to her, who turns up plugs in his earphones and listens to the Solent commentary whilst watching. Back on topic - Should we succeed this couldn’t be classsed as great escape, just getting out of a situation we should never have found ourselves in. It’s more of a great escape for the dithering board. The Great Escapes whilst confined at The Dell were achieved with the club operating at the extreme limits of its budget.

Moss has Palace v The Baggies - Swansea v Stoke is Anthony Taylor.